Golden Streams, Dangerous Dreams

Synopsis:

Will the Anderson brothers discover Jim Richmond’s buried treasure and emerge from the gold rush rich as princes? Will the innocent Thomas be pulled along as his older brother takes ever bigger and increasingly more questionable risks? Will Paul realize his dream or go mad as it consumes him? Will the constable arrive in time to save Claire, Jim’s fiancée, from becoming a gold rush casualty at Paul’s hand? Among the conflicting personal dreams here, there is also an ever deepening conflict between different visions of what makes a human being rich, truly rich, and about “…what it takes” to become rich. It is this conflict that might kill Thomas, or let him emerge from Devil’s Canyon a rich man.

Shawn’s Notes:

Near infinite challenges. Over 1,000 set-ups. 50 extras. 40 days and nights. 34 days in the bush. 7 bit players. 6 days in Barkerville. 3 lead actors. 3 key crew. One original score. An exhausted director. One feature film.

During the summer of 2002, myself and the Dragon Heart Entertainment production team shot “Golden Streams, Dangerous Dreams” as a feature-length movie.

We could not have completed GSDD without a tremendous effort by Nick, Ryan and Tod. Many days, Nick and Tod worked a shift at regular jobs and then worked on the film in the bush until late into the night. I couldn’t count the times we drove the road to Barkerville, dodging wildlife after midnight, and sometimes after rescuing stuck vehicles in the moonlight. In the bush, Nick, Tod and Rebecca sometimes endured mosquitoes so thick there were bats flying overhead eating them. Ryan was assistant everything, and took care of all the things where there were no other hands.

I was especially proud of our whole team on July 6, 2002 when we shot our Barkerville street scenes. We had over 50 background performers, actors, crew and observers present for sequences it had taken weeks to plan. Then last minute changes were forced on us by things, and people, beyond our control, and there were some other distractions, but everyone adapted, the BG performers were patient and we got it done. All this in front of a curious crowd.

Great performances from bit players Ron Silvey, Bill Beningfield, Bob Evans, Jake Van der Merwe, Richard Sutton, Shona Reeves and Derek Norn add a lot of character to GSDD. And the BG performers, who were so generous with their time, make our Barkerville look very well-populated.

We also had great co-operation from many Barkerville businesses that lend sets authenticity, like the presence of a stagecoach! We completely rearranged a whole section of the St. George Hotel Bed and Breakfast, and we were given a second day at the House Hotel when we needed to redo a scene.

Post-production took longer than we thought, but it was well worth it for the digital effects and sound. And Ryan’s original soundtrack is incredible. It alone was well worth the wait.

I would again like to thank my co-producers, Ryan and Nick, for their time, effort and dedication to the project.